Latinos in the Midwest

Ruben Martinez

Publication Year: 2011

Over the past twenty years, the Latino population in the Midwest has grown rapidly, both in urban and rural areas. As elsewhere in the country, shifting demographics in the region have given rise to controversy and mixed reception. Where some communities have greeted Latinos openly, others have been more guarded. In spite of their increasing presence, Latinos remain the most marginalized major population group in the country. In coming years, the projected growth of this population will require greater attention from policymakers concerned with helping to incorporate them into the nation’s core institutions. This eye-opening collection of essays examines the many ways in which an increase in the Latino population has impacted the Midwest — culturally, economically, educationally, and politically. Drawing on studies, personal histories, legal rulings, and other sources, this book takes an interdisciplinary approach to an increasingly important topic in American society and offers a glimpse into the nation’s demographic future.

Contents

Foreword

The study of Latinos in the Midwest is not a new phenomenon, but one that has gained increased recognition due in part to the leadership and vision of Julian Samora. The growth in the numbers of Latinos in the Midwest, a region that is today viewed as a rust belt and a context where change is slow to occur, has become increasingly important. In many ways, Latinos can be seen as contributing ...

Acknowledgments

Like so many other things in life, scholarship is a voyage—one filled with both excitement and difficulty—and in the end one is left with a new understanding of the issues irrespective of whether the final product under- or overshot its initial mark. I am grateful to the many persons who assisted me on the voyage of this volume, especially Catie Jo Hilbelink and Dr. Jennifer Tello Buntin. Without their ...

Introduction

The Spanish explorers left huge footprints in the New World, and their cultural influences are widely felt today from the Canadian border with the United States to Tierra del Fuego, an archipelago off the tip of South America. The mixing of Spanish, African, and other Old World cultures in the New World over the past five hundred years has left few, if any, indigenous peoples untouched and ...

Aztl

In the field of Chicano Studies, the Mesoamerican connection to the southwestern United States is well documented. However, these connections have not been adequately explored for the American Midwest. An alternative perspective, however, suggests a long-standing connection between the indigenous peoples of the Midwest, the Southwest, and Mesoamerica. Examining midwestern Chicano identity ...

The Changing Demography of Latinos in the Midwest

The Midwest has attracted Latinos since the early parts of the 20th century, when Mexicans were recruited to work in jobs in agriculture, railroads, meatpacking, stockyards, and manufacturing (Garcia 1978; Mapes 2004; Lane and Escobar 1987; Rosales 1978; Saenz 1991; Samora and Lamanna 1987; Sepulveda 1978; Vald

Cosas Pol

The U.S. Latino population is not only the nation’s largest ethnic minority group, it is also the fastest growing group in the country, making up “more than half of the overall population growth in the United States” since 2000 (Passel and Cohn 2008). Indeed, Latinos are expected to more than double their numbers by 2050 and comprise 30% of the nation’s population. Accompanying ...

Institutional Obstacles to Incorporation: Latino Immigrant Experiences in a Midsized Rust-Belt City

This chapter explores the incorporation of recent Latino immigrants into local primary institutions in a medium-sized metropolitan area in the Midwest. Institutional incorporation is one dimension of what Portes and Rumbaut (2006) term “context of reception,” situations in the host nation and its communities that can both facilitate and inhibit the successful integration of newcomers and their ability ...

The Impact of an Immigration and Customs Enforcement Raid on Marshalltown, Iowa

Early on Tuesday, December 12, 2006, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) entered the Swift & Company pork-processing facility in Marshalltown, Iowa.1 Federal agents blocked the exits and began checking identification, sorting workers into groups of citizens, legal residents, and those without legal documentation. Using handcuffs, they arrested 90 people, loaded them into three buses with...

Health Needs of Latina Women in Central Illinois: Promoting Early Detection of Cervical and Breast Cancer

Latinos now constitute the largest ethnic minority group in the United States (U.S. Census Bureau 2008b). As such, they have contributed more than half of the population growth (50.5%) in the United States in the 21st century (Fry 2008). Although most of the growth has taken place in geographical areas that historically have been home to a large Latino population, fast growth has occurred ...

Latinos and the Risk of Arrest: National and Regional Effects

The U.S. Census Bureau estimates that from 2000 to 2007, the size of the Latino population grew by 10 million people, an increase of 27%, making them, by far, the nation’s largest minority group. The Latino population in the midwestern states grew by 30% over this time frame, adding about 1 million inhabitants. Crime and justice research has not kept pace with this regional and ...

Litigating Bilingual Education: A History of the Gomez Decision in Illinois

During the 20th century, educational issues of segregation and language became increasingly interrelated legally. Beginning in 1930 several landmark federal cases in Texas and California addressed unequal treatment in the form of separate “Mexican Schools” with special classes for the Spanish speaking that separated them from Anglo students. During the 1940s, according to education ...

Reaching across Borders: The Transnationalizing Effect of Mexican Migration on Public Schools on the Outskirts of Chicago

In 2002 a local newspaper reported on the start of a distance learning program at an Aurora, Illinois, high school that would link adult students in Aurora with teachers in Mexico via satellite (Moore 2002).[District One] ready to launch partnership with Mexico Distance learning: Satellite link will allow immigrants to complete education Aurora—People walking or driving past [District One]...

In agriculture, Michigan’s second largest industry, Hispanics are becoming increasingly important. In 2006, Hispanics made up only 3.9% (393,281) of Michigan’s total population; however, this figure represents a 20.3% increase over the previous six years. Furthermore, Michigan ranks fourth in the nation in the number of seasonal agricultural migrant workers, with approximately 45,000 annually, most ...

CitySpirit: A People’s Mural in Detroit’s Mexicantown

For more than 30 years, thousands of viewers, both residents and visitors, have enjoyed Detroit’s oldest standing outdoor Mexican American / Chicano mural, commonly known as CitySpirit. An example of public art well integrated with a living space, the mural is prominently located on a busy street corner in Mexicantown, a vibrant Detroit community possessing the largest concentration ...

Conclusion

The studies and essays in this volume shed light on some aspects of the experiences and dimensions of Latinos in the Midwest. Although a robust body of scholarship is beginning to emerge, much research remains to be done both on the historical experience and current context of Latinos in midwestern communities, especially relative to ways by which they can be incorporated into societal institutions ...

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